Player
Robin van Persie wants Chelsea boss to give Hakim Ziyech ‘much bigger role’
Former Arsenal forward Robin van Persie has urged Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel to give “a much bigger role” to Hakim Ziyech. The 28-year-old has made 39 appearances for the Blues across all competitions since teaming up with the side last summer. The winger has played in a number of roles under Tuchel and Van Persie has expressed his displeasure with this, since the Morocco international does not have a definite role at the club. “It is actually a shame that the creativity of players like Ziyech, Pulisic and Kovacic – who I think is a brilliant player – is not being expressed,” Van Persie told De Telegraaf. “Kovacic is their engine and playmaker. Ziyech also has those qualities higher up the pitch, but he should have a much bigger role in the team. “He is now constantly searching [for a p...
Manchester City willing to break £100 million barrier to sign Aston Villa skipper
Manchester City are willing to break the £100m barriers to sign Aston Villa captain Jack Grealish. The Daily Mail says Grealish has long been admired by Pep Guardiola and City’s manager wants the 25-year-old at the hub of what he hopes he will become the second great team of his reign in Manchester. Villa rewarded Grealish last September with a lucrative new contract and the club captain still has four years to run on his deal. His importance to Dean Smith’s side is huge and, as such, they would not entertain selling their local hero for anything less than a new British transfer record. City have not had the most expensive player in the Premier League since they signed Robinho for £32.5m at the start of the Abu Dhabi era in September 2008 but there is recognition that recruiting Grealish w...
Lazio confirm Simone Inzaghi’s exit
Lazio released a terse statement confirming Simone Inzaghi ‘changed his mind’ and is heading to Inter. Inzaghi’s contract with the Aquile is due to expire on June 30 and last night he had seemingly agreed to extend it until June 2024. However, Inter came back with a new proposal to practically double the wages on offer and lead the Serie A Champions. It was reported President Claudio Lotito tried and failed to change his mind, even telling Il Messaggero this afternoon that they would announce the new contract later. Lazio finally accepted they had lost Inzaghi and released a terse statement in which they never even said his name. “We respect the change of mind of a coach and, before that, of a player who for many years tied his name to the Lazio family and the many Biancocelesti successes....
Ex-Super Eagles midfielder Seyi Olofinjana appointed GC Zurich technical director
Switzerland side Grasshopper Club Zurich have appointed former Super Eagles midfielder Seyi Olofinjana as the new technical director. The 40-year-old was most recently a loan manager at Wolverhampton Wanderers. Olofinjana will take over the position of Technical Director at the Grasshopper Club Zurich with immediate effect and will be responsible for sports. He is taking over the position of interim sports director from Jimmy Berisha, who is stepping back into his role as Managing Director. ”Olofinjana was active in his career as a player for Stoke City, Hull City and the Wolverhampton Wanderers, among others. After his active career, he worked for the Wolverhampton Wanderers in various positions. Most recently, he worked as a loan manager,” reads a statement on the club website. “Olofinja...
Paolo Maldini: Gianluigi Donnarumma to leave AC Milan as free agent
Gianluigi Donnarumma will leave AC Milan this summer, club director Paolo Maldini announced on Wednesday, with the Italy goalkeeper set to pick his new club as a free agent. Donnarumma’s Milan contract expires at the end of the month and he has been linked with moves to La Liga giants Barcelona and Real Madrid, Manchester United and even bitter Serie A rivals Juventus. “We need to show respect for someone who has given a lot to Milan, he has never disrespected us. We’re going our separate ways but I can only wish him the very best,” Milan legend Maldini said on social media platform Twitch. Seven-time European champions Milan finished second in Serie A last weekend, securing Champions League football for the first time since the 2013-2014 season. Donnarumma was a near ever-present in Stefa...
Minister: Nigerian government to scale up domestic gas expansion, monetisation drive
Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Mr. Timipre Sylva, has stated that the federal government will continue to ramp up its current domestic gas expansion drive as well as its monetisation programme to increase the country’s supply of the much needed foreign exchange earnings. Speaking when he appeared virtually at the formal opening of the new headquarters of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, the minister stressed that the company was expected to play a major role in achieving the objective. Sylva noted that the country’s gas reserves must be fully explored for the full benefit of Nigerians, noting that has remains a major game-changer for Nigeria, especially with the renewed attention to the commodity as a lower carbon energy source. “In ...
Report: Lionel Messi accepts new Barcelona deal
Lionel Messi will stay at Barcelona. The official announcement will be treated as Barca’s big signing of the summer and the latest important media outlet to confirm the news is ‘BeIN Sports’. Journalist Achraf Ben Ayad, who follows Barca news very closely, says that Leo Messi has decided to stay. The Argentine missed the final game of the La Liga season and he did not train on Friday either with the club’s permission. The striker has taken holiday before going to Argentina to play in the Copa America. It seems like Leo Messi wants to decide on his future before the Copa America starts in June so the Argentinian’s new deal could be confirmed in the next two weeks. Leo Messi will have to accept a contract with a lowe salary than his current one due to Barca’s complicated financial situation....
Liverpool boss refuses to confirm Gini Wijnaldum’s departure
Jurgen Klopp refused to confirm whether Gini Wijnaldum is set to play his final game for Liverpool this weekend, but insisted the midfielder’s commitment to the Reds cannot be questioned. Wijnaldum’s contract at Anfield expires next month, and there is no sign of the 30-year-old agreeing a renewal. Bayern Munich and Barcelona have been strongly linked with the Dutch international, who is likely to captain the Reds on Sunday in their crunch clash with Crystal Palace at home. Klopp refused to be drawn on Wijnaldum’s future at a press conference at Kirkby on Friday, telling reporters: “There’s nothing to say in this moment. We have a game to play. We will see after the final whistle on Sunday.” Later, though, he was asked whether the idea of such an influential player – Wijnaldum has made 50 ...
Harry Maguire almost certain to miss Europa League final
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says Harry Maguire will almost certainly not be fit enough to face Villareal in the Europa League final. Speaking at the pre-match press conference ahead of United’s final Premier League game of the season against Wolves at Molyneux, the boss confirmed the bad news. ‘I’m going to give him until Tuesday night and the last training session, to see if he can be out there — steadily he is improving but we’re going to give him time to heal. ‘He’s walking but it’s a long way from walking to running so, to be honest, I don’t think we’ll see him in Gdansk, no,’ Solskjaer said. The news will come as a bitter blow for the United skipper, who had been ever-present in nearly two seasons of League football since joining the Red Devils from Leicester City. ...
Dennis Bergkamp named Premier League Hall of Fame inductee
Dennis Bergkamp is the latest former player to be inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame. The Dutchman joins ex-Arsenal team-mate Thierry Henry as well as Alan Shearer, Eric Cantona, Roy Keane and Frank Lampard in receiving the League’s highest individual honour. “It feels special to be part of a small group of players who got the recognition of playing in the strongest league in the world,” said Bergkamp. “I’m honoured.” His arrival at Arsenal in 1995 from Inter Milan was the catalyst for a transformation of the Premier League, the playmaker adding a new level of technical ability and skill that elevated the competition and attracted other stars from overseas. ‘THE PL MADE ME A BETTER PLAYER’ “I’m extremely proud if people say that I was one of the first foreign players who added s...
Harry Kane tells Tottenham he wants to leave this summer
Harry Kane has reiterated his stance that he wants to leave Tottenham this summer. The 27-year-old has grown frustrated over the club’s inability to compete at the highest level, having seen his side fall out of contention to secure Champions League football for next season. Spurs have long been reluctant to entertain bids for their talisman but the England captain is hoping that they will soften their stance after his long service to the club. Daniel Levy will demand a huge fee for Kane – who prefers a move within the Premier League – as he is on a long-term deal until 2024. Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea are potentially viable destinations, although it is still unclear as to whether a move will materialise. All three of the aforementioned Premier League giants have signif...
Manchester United board in disagreement with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer over Paul Pogba
Manchester United’s board and manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, are in disagreement over the future of Paul Pogba. The Mirror says with his contract at Old Trafford due to expire next year, attentions are starting to turn towards a possible new contract. Solskjaer wants the midfielder to stay at the club, having worked so hard to get him back to his blistering best. But it’s said that, behind the scenes, there’s a split in opinion. Some United board members are wary of meeting Pogba’s salary demands with the player’s agent, Mino Raiola, wanting his client to pocket £400,000-a-week. That’s just too steep at the current moment in time, particularly with the coronavirus crisis raging on and Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane being amongst their current targets. United are said to value their midfie...
